The Present Disclosure relates, generally, to connectors mounted on a plurality of photovoltaic panels and connected to each other via a cable.
Photovoltaic systems usually include a plurality of photovoltaic panels. These photovoltaic panels are typically arranged in vertical and/or lateral rows and connected to each other via cables. A connector for connecting the cable is mounted on each panel. A connector used for this purpose has been disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Patent No. 3069523, the content of which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety. This connector has a housing (a box housing main body) for housing a conductive member (a terminal plate) which is connected to the electric wires in the cable. The housing is box-shaped and is open on the top. The top of the housing is closed using a cover (a cover plate).
In order ensure that the insulating properties for the conductive member are sufficient, the distance from the conductive member to the outer surface of the housing is preferably as great as possible (the spatial distance or creepage distance, which is referred to as the insulating distance below). However, the size of the connector is increased when the insulating distance is lengthened.